Quiet luxury is a term you might have heard much more of lately. It represents a growing shift in consumer behaviour, particularly among high-end watch buyers who increasingly favour subtlety, craftsmanship, and exclusivity over loud branding.
This article examines how status expression in luxury watch consumption has evolved, drawing on recent academic research and industry analysis to explain the psychological, cultural, and economic forces behind this transformation.
By contextualising the rise of quiet luxury within broader patterns of identity signalling and post-pandemic market trends, we explore why discreet, insider-recognised timepieces are replacing overt symbols like Rolex as the new currency of taste among high-end consumers.
The Psychology Behind Quiet Luxury
Over a century ago, economist Thorstein Veblen observed the elite flaunting wealth through obvious status symbols, what he famously termed “conspicuous consumption” (Veblen, 1899).
In Veblen’s time, lavish material goods were a clear marker for social standing. Fast-forward to the 21st century, and the landscape of status signalling has changed.
Luxury goods have become much more accessible across social classes, blurring the old markers of distinction (Currid-Halkett, 2017).
Researchers note that the “democratisation” of luxury means obvious status items are far less useful as a means of displaying status than before (Currid-Halkett, 2017).
In response, today’s high-net-worth individuals often favour what sociologist Elizabeth Currid-Halkett calls inconspicuous consumption, investing in less visible, more exclusive status markers (Currid-Halkett, 2017).
This sets the stage for a cultural shift: blatant bling is out, and “if you know, you know” style is in.
We will explore this socio-cultural shift, looking at fashion and luxury trends from the early 2000s to 2025.
We’ll revisit how Burberry’s iconic plaid became a victim of its own success, examine the post-COVID luxury watch boom, and analyse the rise of “quiet luxury” as the new status uniform.
Throughout, we draw on research and real examples to show how status expression and identity are continuously evolving in the luxury landscape.
Burberry’s Iconic Nova Check Pattern
Few examples illustrate the danger of too much popularity better than Burberry’s famed Nova Check pattern.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Burberry’s tartan became the fashion status symbol ubiquitous on everything from scarves to caps. Its popularity, however, nearly destroyed the brand’s image.
What began as a sign of British luxury heritage turned into a “chavtastic” cliché, associated with “non-desirables” in the UK (Rodgers, 2023).
By the early 2000s, the Burberry check had been overexposed. A notorious tabloid photo from 2002 showed actress Danniella Westbrook clad head-to-toe in a Burberry plaid skirt, bag, and even pushing her infant in a matching Burberry stroller (Rodgers, 2023).
The Sun captioned the photo “chavtastic.” As Justine Picardie, editor of Harper’s Bazaar, observed: “Burberry had become so associated with a downmarket image… that iconic plaid had become… associated with the cheapest form of disposable rip-off fashion” (Picardie, 2012).
Burberry’s brand crisis led to a cleanup strategy in the mid-2000s under CEO Angela Ahrendts.
The company drastically pulled back on the check pattern to restore exclusivity, even buying back licenses to stop its use on cheap products.
Burberry reduced its visible check on outerwear and refocused on heritage trench coats and quality. This painful rebranding eventually paid off.
Burberry’s check saga encapsulates a broader cultural dynamic: overt status symbols can lose cachet among your target audience.
In the early 2000s, wearing a Burberry cap telegraphed status; a few years later, it might get you barred from high-end clubs. Their core target audience moved on, seeking new ways to distinguish themselves.
The Post-Covid Watch Boom: When “Everyone” Has a Rolex
In the 2020s, luxury wristwatches, especially Rolex, became a case study in democratising status symbols. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the luxury watch market experienced a boom.
With travel and other experiences limited, consumers poured money into watches, driving prices for desirable models to record heights (Fearon, 2025).
Production slowdowns combined with surging demand created artificial scarcity, and prices skyrocketed (Fearon, 2025).
By 2023-2024, as global economies cooled, the luxury watch market corrected sharply. A Bloomberg-indexed basket of watches was down ~27% from its peak (Fearon, 2025).
Yet the cultural impact remained: Rolex had become ubiquitous. With the rise of “superfakes,” even experts struggled to identify counterfeits.
One platform (Bezel) reported that in the first half of 2024, about 24% of watches submitted for sale were high-quality fakes or contained counterfeit parts (Wolf, 2024).
The upshot is that wearing a Rolex in 2025 no longer guarantees distinction.
Many collectors and status-aware buyers began seeking alternatives: obscure independent watchmakers, vintage pieces, or minimalist models.
Among the most sought after are F.P. Journe, Kari Voutilainen, Rexhep Rexhepi, and Philippe Dufour artisans whose work is not about brand marketing, but exceptional mastery.
These names are revered by those in the know not for their visibility, but for their restraint, finishing, and scarcity.
To the untrained eye, these watches may seem understated; to the collector, they signal deep expertise and rarefied taste.
Others like Laurent Ferrier, a former Patek engineer known for Geneva Seal-level finishing, or Grönefeld, the Dutch ‘Horological Brothers’ famed for their low-volume mechanical artistry, further illustrate how status today is measured in refinement over recognition.
Similarly, legacy brands like Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin continue to embody quiet luxury through heritage and consistent technical excellence.
Their appeal lies not in mass-market recognition but in generational prestige and the respect they command within collecting circles.
The Rise of Quiet Luxury
By 2023, “quiet luxury”, “stealth wealth”, or the now cliché “old money” became a dominant aesthetic. In contrast to logo-heavy fashion, quiet luxury is about understatement: neutral tones, timeless cuts, and no visible branding (Hartmans, 2023).
Post-pandemic economic uncertainty made overt displays of wealth feel out of touch. Social media amplified the trend with the “old money aesthetic” going viral. Shows like Succession helped shape this image with characters in expensive but logo‑free wardrobes (9‑BIRDS, 2025).
Loro Piana, Brunello Cucinelli, and The Row all became the must haves of the quiet luxury aesthetic.
These brands offer ultra-high-end pieces with no logos, relying on quality, materials, and cut to speak for themselves (Nichols, 2023).
One commentator called Loro Piana “the Uniqlo for billionaires” (Nichols, 2023).
Quiet luxury appeals to insiders who recognise quality, not outsiders chasing status. As sociologist Emily Rogers noted, “Quiet luxury is a wink to the 1% a way to say, ‘I’m rich, but I’m not crude enough to flaunt it’” (9‑BIRDS, 2025).
Brands now engineer exclusivity through limited access, understated design, and sky-high prices.
Hermès and Cucinelli have leaned into this selling to only the most selective clients (9‑BIRDS, 2025).
Signalling Status Quietly vs. Loudly
Consumer psychology offers a framework for this shift. Han, Nunes, and Drèze (2010) outlined four types of status-seeking consumers:
- Patricians (quiet, true elites)
- Parvenus (loud, newly wealthy)
- Poseurs (imitators)
- Proletarians (unconcerned).
Patricians prefer inconspicuous goods that only insiders recognise, reinforcing cultural capital over apparent wealth.
Currid-Halkett (2017) described a similar trend with the “aspirational class” educated elites who signal status through subtle consumption: organic food, education, or plain but expensive basics. Knowing what a Loro Piana Harlan coat is and being able to afford it becomes a key divider.
Knowledge itself becomes the currency. This matches the appeal of quiet luxury: if you know, you know.
Conclusion: Identity, Status and the Future of “Stealth Wealth”
From Burberry plaid to Rolex hype to $33,000 logo-free coats, the evolution of luxury shows that status signalling is constantly adapting.
As old symbols get co-opted, luxury consumers retreat to subtler signs of wealth.
In 2025, quiet luxury is the new status play where quality, access, and cultural fluency matter more than overt branding.
Even as “quiet luxury” becomes more mainstream, high-net-worth individuals will keep finding new ways to signal distinction.
For now, that whisper of wealth—unbranded, handmade, and hard to get—says more than any logo ever could.
References
Currid-Halkett, E. (2017). The sum of small things: A theory of the aspirational class. Princeton University Press.
Fearon, F. (2025, January 24). Mark Zuckerberg’s Hand Made 1 watch has a successor: Independent luxury watchmaker Greubel Forsey launches the newest addition to its line‑up, limited to 200 pieces a year. South China Morning Post.
Han, Y. J., Nunes, J. C., & Drèze, X. (2010). Signalling status with luxury goods: The role of brand prominence. Journal of Marketing, 74(4), 15–30. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.74.4.15
Hartmans, A. (2023, April 16). ‘Quiet luxury’ is back for the first time since the Great Recession. Here’s what it is and what brands stand to benefit. Business Insider.
9‑BIRDS. (2025). The truth about quiet luxury: Why expensive doesn’t always mean better.
Picardie, J. (2012). How an American woman rescued Burberry. The Guardian.
Rodgers, D. (2023, June 29). Vetements’ 16‑XL collection is a last‑ditch attempt to prevent quiet luxury. Dazed.
Nichols, K. (2023). The 2023 luxury report: The brands, items, and trends defining designer fashion. Who What Wear.
Wolf, C. (2024, August 9). Why you need a summer watch. GQ.
